Floods affected seven villages in Cilacap district, Central Java, on Sunday following incessant rains since Saturday evening. The villages were always flooded in the rainy season as they were located in a low-laying area, chief of the Cilacap district natural disaster mitigation board Dangir Mulyadi said. The seven flooded-villages were Tegalsari, Gunungreja, Sidareja, Sidamulya, Tinggarjaya, Sudagaran and Ciklapa. They are located in the subdistricts of Sidareja and Kedungreja, ANTARA reported. The worst-hit areas were those located near the Cibereum river basin, he said. "We will keep monitoring the areas although the floods are routine happenings. If there are evacuees we will send them aid," he said. Sidareja subdistrict head Arifin said the floods began inundating the villages on Saturday night. He said a total of 2,544 homes were flooded with the water level ranging from 10 cm to 1 m. "Seven families at Sidareja village have evacuated to a mosque in the Sidareja subdistrict military command compound when the flood water began to rise on Saturday night," he said. The floods also inundated 78 hectares of rice field, he said. The villages have been twice flooded since early this year.
